I have been craving baked summer fruit treats like nobody’s business. So, despite my usually indifferent attitude towards baking, I’ve been hitting the kitchen to, well, bake. There was this delish Cinnamon Cardamom Cherry Crisp and these simple, yummy Quick Individual Plum & Blueberry Cakes. That may not seem like a lot of baking to you, but it does to me. Especially when you add this Sour Cream Peach Pie to the mix. (Thank you very much!)

I was inspired to make this by one of my favorite food blogs, Smitten Kitchen. And, as any regular reader knows, when I say “inspired” in reference to baking, it means that I’ve adapted the recipe. I used sour cream instead of creme fraiche. Don’t know how it would have tasted otherwise, but sour cream seemed to work just fine. And though I used to make a killer pie crust, I bought one for this recipe. I needed a time saver or the peaches were going to go bad. I did the predictable thing and chose an organic whole wheat pie crust. Though it was fine, I wouldn’t do it again. This pie is too subtle for the nuttier flavor of whole wheat.

Though you know me as a cook, I’ve baked enough to definitively say that this recipe is a keeper! Totally fresh and delicious. That said, for my taste, it was a tiny bit too subtle. Next time, I think I’ll add spice. Probably throw some cinnamon in the streusel. And, even though Deb addressed the level of sweetness with her variation (you’ll see that I used the high end of the amount of sugar she suggests), I still wanted this to be a teeny, tiny bit sweeter. But that’s just me. The ChowPapa loved this as is and it certainly didn’t lack the sweetness needed to capture my ChowBaby’s appetite.

So go and get yourself some peaches. Buy enough to eat a few fresh and throw the rest into this yummy pie. If you have the time and feel like it, try making Deb’s all butter, really flaky pie dough and maybe even your own creme fraiche (link provided by Smitten Kitchen). Otherwise, do I as I did and get a pre-made crust. All you’ll have to do is throw together a quick streusel and toss some peaches with other good stuff. So worth it.

Pie Crust
organic, flaky pie crust, store bought or enough dough for a single crust pie, chilled for at least 1 hr in the fridge, unless already frozen as a crust or just thawed and cold enough to roll

Prepare and parbake pie dough1. If making homemade dough, roll it out to about 1/8″ thick and fit into a 9 1/2-10″ pie pan. Trim the edge to 1/2″, fold under and crimp as desired. Pierce bottom of dough all over with a fork. Transfer to freezer for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 400 degrees right before you take it out. If using store bought dough or crust, follow instructions on the package.

2. When crust and oven are prepped, parbake the crust. (I did this with my store bought crust, taking it right out of the freezer and into this step.) Tightly press a piece of aluminum foil against frozen pie crust. Fill the shell with pie weights or dried beans, or you can wing it hoping that the foil will be enough to keep the crust shape in place.
3. Bake for 10 minutes, then carefully remove foil and any weights. Using the back of a spoon, press down bubbled-up spots and return the crust to the oven for another 5 to 8 minutes, or until it is lightly golden brown. Transfer to a wire rack to cool slightly. Reduce oven temperature to 375°F.

Note: Deb says that you can save time by skipping the parbake step. Given the light nature of the filling, odds are good that the crust will not become excessively soggy.

Make Streusel1. Stir confectioners’ sugar, baking powder, salt, and 3 tbsp flour together in a small bowl. Add bits of cold butter and using a fork, pastry blender, or your fingertips, work them into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse crumbs. Add additional flour as needed. Set aside.

Make the filling & bake the pie1. Sprinkle quartered peaches with sugar and salt. Let sit for 10 minutes.

2. Spread 2 tbsp sour cream in bottom of parbaked pie shell, sprinkle with 1/3 of the streusel, and fan the peach quarters on top. Dot the remaining 3 tbsp of sour cream on the peaches and sprinkle with remaining streusel.

3. Bake until the sour cream is bubbled and the streusel is golden brown, about 50 minutes. Cover edge of crust with a strip of foil if it browns too quickly. Let cool on a wire rack at least 15 minutes before serving.

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6 Responses

“That may not seem like a lot of baking to you”… It *does* when you consider the current temperature in NYC! I can hardly even turn on the stovetop in this heat, much less the oven. Yikes! Hats off, Stacie!

[…] cookies are not something you want to experiment with. You just want them to come out perfect. So, yet again, I turned to one of my favorite food blogs, Smitten Kitchen. All of Deb’s food looks (and, […]

[…] just gotten lucky as a result! Most of my recent baked goodies made use of seasonal fruit, like my Sour Cream Peach Pie and Cinnamon Cardamom Cherry Crisp (both of which can be made with frozen fruit now that summer is […]

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Stacie Billis is a food editor, recipe developer, and cookbook author with a Master’s degree in child development who is absolutely as geeky and hungry as that makes her sound. Stacie is always ready to eat delicious food and loves sharing her healthy eats with her family—most of the time.